Published 6:27 am, Saturday, December 20, 2014

STAMFORD — Assistant Principal Angela Thomas-Graves of Stamford High School is set to immediately return to her job this week after being placed on administrative leave earlier this month.

Although school officials would not comment on why she was on leave, the decision came as the school system began its investigation into whether administrators failed to report an inappropriate student-teacher relationship this past year.

“The alleged personnel issue in question was found to be unsubstantiated,” said Superintendent of Schools Winifred Hamilton in a statement on Friday.

Public Affairs Officer for Stamford Public Schools Sharon Beadle confirmed earlier this month that Thomas-Graves was placed on administrative leave.

But Beadle said she could not provide further details, as the issue was a personnel matter.

“We are glad to put this behind us and let her get back to serving the students at SHS,” Hamilton said.

Thomas-Graves was named in an October police affidavit when police charged SHS Principal Donna Valentine and Assistant Principal Roth Nordin with failing to report sexual misconduct.

Police said Valentine and Nordin failed to report to the Department of Children and Families that SHS English teacher Danielle Watkins, 32, of Norwalk, was having sex with a 18-year-old student.

Police say Watkins had more than 20 sexual encounters with the student over a nine-month period from September 2013 to June 2014.

Valentine and Nordin were placed on administrative leave following their arrests.

Last month, a Superior Court judge permitted them to enter a state diversionary program that could eventually erase the failure to report charges from their records.

On May 13, police said a SHS teacher overheard three juveniles talking before class about a student and teacher having a relationship.

“They were talking loudly as if all the students knew,” said police Sgt. Sean Scanlan in an affidavit.

The teacher told Thomas-Graves about the information she heard from the juveniles, police said, as well as emailed Valentine on May 14 that a student and teacher were “sleeping together.”

“He said everyone knew about it and he had seen [Watkins and the student] many times in [Watkins’] car together,” Scanlan said.

The teacher told Valentine in person approximately two weeks later about what she told Thomas-Graves, police said.

In mid-May, police said Thomas-Graves relayed the information the teacher gave her to Nordin.

“Graves gave a sworn statement saying she immediately knew who the student was the kids were referring to but indicated she did not know the teacher’s name,” Scanlan said.

Nordin told Thomas-Graves that the teacher was Watkins and that she knew whom the student was, police said.

Police said Nordin told Thomas-Graves that she and Valentine “were aware of the situation and were looking into it.”

On May 27, Valentine asked SHS Assistant Principal Matthew Forker to conduct surveillance of Watkins and the student, as she had suspicions about them, police said.

Scanlan said, though, Valentine did not make a report to DCF.

Police said they were notified of Watkins and the student’s sexual relationship on June 23.